For a moment, the scene settled into an eerie stalemate.
Bone Vulture dared not strike the rat for fear of breaking the vase; Chu Mo held a "bomb"; their fellow disciples were still reeling in terror. The air congealed, murderous intent surged beneath the surface, and the fragile balance could shatter at a touch.
"Interesting. A bold boy with a careful mind."
A calm voice rang out without warning, breaking the deathly stalemate.
Chu Mo glanced over from the corner of his eye and saw a cultivator in moon-white robes standing quietly in midair, utterly out of place amid the surrounding tension.
No one had noticed when he appeared. It was as though he had been there all along.
[Level 15 · High Person Yuanbai]
Bone Vulture's soul nearly fled his body. Since he intended to infiltrate Fuli Heaven, he naturally knew something of cultivation realms. This man had appeared without a sound; his cultivation was definitely above Foundation Establishment.
Without a second thought, he turned to flee for his life.
Yet Yuan Bai merely gave him a casual glance and lightly pointed a finger.
"Freeze."
His words became law. The space around Bone Vulture seemed to solidify instantly. He was pinned in midair in the very posture of taking flight, unable even to move his eyes. Only disbelief showed in his pupils.
How could the gulf between us be so vast?! Horror flooded his mind. Now he could not even escape this bodily shell.
"Savage remnants. Ignorant indeed." High Person Yuanbai's tone was placid, without a trace of emotion, as though he were stating an obvious fact.
"You know nothing of the lofty profundity of immortal arts, yet you dream of passing fish eyes off as pearls with your crooked methods and entering my Calamity-Crossing Immortal Sect? Were this realm's Heavenly Dao not obscuring heaven's secrets, do you think any of you would still be alive?
"The sect gave you a chance to abandon evil and return to the righteous path, but you failed to cherish it. Now it is too late."
Bone Vulture roared wildly in his heart, desperately driving the power he had just fused with. He tried to break free of his restraints and tell the man that he truly wanted to surrender.
But his meager true qi and the Blood Ancestor's power were like a firefly before the radiant moon against Yuan Bai's ocean-vast magical power. He strained with every ounce of strength, yet could not even open his mouth, much less beg for mercy.
The next instant, Yuan Bai joined two fingers into a sword and lightly swept them through the air.
Bone Vulture, along with the body of "Ying Le" on which he had pinned such hopes, turned silently into fine dust like a sketch rubbed out by an eraser. He dispersed between heaven and earth, leaving not the slightest trace.
High Person Yuanbai did not even look at the spot where Bone Vulture had vanished. His gaze swept casually over those below, pausing briefly on Qi Luoshuang. He clicked his tongue softly and murmured:
"Still alive... That fellow Hong Xuan has rather good luck."
He had deliberately arrived late. Unless these natives believed they had an opening and unleashed everything they had, how could he draw out this realm's final means of resistance and catch them all in one net?
As for casualties among the disciples... On the path of cultivation, the strong survived and the weak were culled. So it had always been.
"Senior Brother Xuanji and the others should be drawing in their nets too."
Yuan Bai looked toward several other places in Hidden Mist Valley where auras lay concealed. Once the last few hidden Totems were uprooted, this realm would lose all means of resistance.
As his thoughts flowed, his gaze naturally fell upon the altar.
Chu Mo jolted. He noticed that Yuan Bai's gaze seemed to linger for an instant on his Corpse Puppet and the dying blood-red heart on the altar.
Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately ordered the Corpse Puppet to discard the Spirit Talisman. At the same time, he strode forward, bowed respectfully to High Person Yuanbai in the air, and declared:
"This disciple, Chu Mo, respectfully welcomes your arrival, High Person! Your discerning gaze sees all. Such an uncanny, evil thing is foul beyond measure. Only one with your immortal grace is qualified to dispose of it. We disciples dare not overstep!"
The Corpse Puppet knelt on one knee and raised the "blood-red heart" high in both hands.
At those words, Yuan Bai looked at Chu Mo and studied him with interest. A faint, ambiguous smile curved his lips. "Oh? You do know how to behave."
Chu Mo lowered his head, his tone sincere. "Your Divine Abilities are boundless, High Person. You saved us from fire and flood in the nick of time. This is only proper. This disciple dares claim no credit."
His words were so earnest that every syllable seemed to come from the bottom of his heart. It was as though he had completely forgotten his earlier complaints about the man's unreliability.
"Heh." High Person Yuanbai chuckled and said nothing more.
He reached out and beckoned, and the blood-red heart floated gently into his palm. After a brief examination, he sighed inwardly. Just as expected. A pity.
Though the Blood Ancestor Totem appeared intact, the law it contained had long since dissipated. All that remained was a ruined shell with nothing but its former shape.
Still, if it truly contained an undamaged law from another realm, he would never have had a turn to benefit from it.
The sect had no shortage of powerful cultivators at the Foundation Establishment late stage who had already reached the bottleneck of their realm. They were merely waiting to refine a foreign law and break through to the Golden Core realm.
Yuan Bai thought no further. With a flick of his sleeve, an ancient pill furnace appeared, bearing three legs, two handles, and engraved cloud patterns. Its lid opened on its own, releasing a suction force that drew the blood-red heart inside.
This was his life-bound magical treasure-the [Violet Cloud Furnace].
As the Totem was collected, the notification in Chu Mo's vision updated as well:
[Regional event: The Blood Ancestor's awakening ritual has ended]
High Person Yuanbai put away the pill furnace. His gaze swept over the surviving disciples below, still shaken by their ordeal, and his voice carried across the entire scene:
"An unexpected disturbance has arisen in the Savage Realm. The outer sect examination will end here ahead of schedule."
With that, he swept his great sleeve. Every surviving disciple except Chu Mo, including Qi Luoshuang, lit up with the gentle glow of transport. Their figures rapidly blurred and vanished in an instant, forcibly teleported back to Fuli Heaven.
Only Chu Mo and High Person Yuanbai remained.
Chu Mo was wondering why he alone had been left behind when High Person Yuanbai looked over and said casually:
"Since you know how to behave so well, boy, stay and accompany me as I watch this realm's... final glimmer."
Chu Mo did not understand what he meant, but he knew full well that obedience was his only option now. He immediately answered respectfully, "This disciple is deeply honored. Thank you for your grace, High Person."
Yuan Bai nodded slightly and was about to use his arts to take Chu Mo away when Chu Mo cupped his hands once more, looking somewhat embarrassed.
"High Person, might I ask you to wait a moment? This disciple... still has a few trifling matters to attend to."
Yuan Bai glanced at him, neither agreeing nor refusing.
Taking that as tacit permission, Chu Mo sprang into action. He moved like the wind, darting through the ruins with practiced ease. Bending down, picking things up, and stuffing them into his Storage Bag, he completed each sequence in one fluid motion.
Whether the Storage Bags on the bodies or damaged Dharmic Instruments, almost nothing escaped his hands. He even deftly collected the natives' corpses, intending to extract their spines when he had time.
Before long, Chu Mo had picked the entire battlefield clean. He returned to High Person Yuanbai and bowed respectfully.
"Reporting to you, High Person: this disciple has finished."
Yuan Bai: "..."
Yuan Bai looked at the Storage Bags hanging all around Chu Mo's waist. The corner of his eye twitched almost imperceptibly.
In the end, he said nothing and merely swept his sleeve. An invisible force enveloped Chu Mo, and they turned into a streak of escaping light and vanished from the spot.